Decades of research indicate the important connections among academic motivation and achievement, social relationships, and school culture. However, much of this research has been conducted in ...
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Decades of research indicate the important connections among academic motivation and achievement, social relationships, and school culture. However, much of this research has been conducted in homogenous American schools serving middle class, average achieving, Anglo-student populations. This book argues that school culture is a reflection of the society in which the school is embedded and comprises various aspects, including individualism, competition, cultural stereotypes, and extrinsically guided values and rewards. Chapters address three specific conceptual questions: How do differences in academic motivation for diverse groups of students change over time? How do students' social cognitions influence their motivational processes and outcomes in school? And what has been done to enhance academic motivation? To answer this last question, the chapters describe empirically validated intervention programs for improving academic motivation in students from elementary school through college.Less

Academic Motivation and the Culture of School in Childhood and Adolescence

Published in print: 2008-07-30

Decades of research indicate the important connections among academic motivation and achievement, social relationships, and school culture. However, much of this research has been conducted in homogenous American schools serving middle class, average achieving, Anglo-student populations. This book argues that school culture is a reflection of the society in which the school is embedded and comprises various aspects, including individualism, competition, cultural stereotypes, and extrinsically guided values and rewards. Chapters address three specific conceptual questions: How do differences in academic motivation for diverse groups of students change over time? How do students' social cognitions influence their motivational processes and outcomes in school? And what has been done to enhance academic motivation? To answer this last question, the chapters describe empirically validated intervention programs for improving academic motivation in students from elementary school through college.

One of the most important questions about children's development involves how knowledge acquisition depends on the effect of language experience. To what extent, and in what ways, is a child's ...
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One of the most important questions about children's development involves how knowledge acquisition depends on the effect of language experience. To what extent, and in what ways, is a child's cognitive development influenced by their early experience of, and access to, language? Likewise, what are the effects on development of impaired access to language? This book confronts directly the issue of how possessing an enhanced or impaired access to language influences children's development. Its focus is on learning environments, theory of mind understanding, and the process of deriving meaning from conversations. The book features chapters which are concerned with bilingualism, deafness, atypical child development, and development in cultures with limited vocabularies in areas such as number concepts. Throughout, it maps out what is known about the interface between language and cognitive development and the prospects for the future directions in research and applied settings.Less

Access to Language and Cognitive Development

Published in print: 2011-12-15

One of the most important questions about children's development involves how knowledge acquisition depends on the effect of language experience. To what extent, and in what ways, is a child's cognitive development influenced by their early experience of, and access to, language? Likewise, what are the effects on development of impaired access to language? This book confronts directly the issue of how possessing an enhanced or impaired access to language influences children's development. Its focus is on learning environments, theory of mind understanding, and the process of deriving meaning from conversations. The book features chapters which are concerned with bilingualism, deafness, atypical child development, and development in cultures with limited vocabularies in areas such as number concepts. Throughout, it maps out what is known about the interface between language and cognitive development and the prospects for the future directions in research and applied settings.

Words are the building blocks of language. An understanding of how words are learned is thus central to any theory of language acquisition. Although there has been a surge in our understanding of ...
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Words are the building blocks of language. An understanding of how words are learned is thus central to any theory of language acquisition. Although there has been a surge in our understanding of children's vocabulary growth, theories of word learning focus primarily on object nouns. Word learning theories must explain not only the learning of object nouns, but also the learning of other, major classes of words — verbs and adjectives. Verbs form the hub of the sentence because they determine the sentence's argument structure. Researchers throughout the world recognize how our understanding of language acquisition can be at best partial if we cannot comprehend how verbs are learned. This book enters the relatively uncharted waters of early verb learning, focusing on the universal, conceptual foundations for verb learning, and how these foundations intersect with the burgeoning language system.Less

Action Meets Word : How children learn verbs

Kathryn A. Hirsh-PasekRoberta M. Golinkoff

Published in print: 2006-04-27

Words are the building blocks of language. An understanding of how words are learned is thus central to any theory of language acquisition. Although there has been a surge in our understanding of children's vocabulary growth, theories of word learning focus primarily on object nouns. Word learning theories must explain not only the learning of object nouns, but also the learning of other, major classes of words — verbs and adjectives. Verbs form the hub of the sentence because they determine the sentence's argument structure. Researchers throughout the world recognize how our understanding of language acquisition can be at best partial if we cannot comprehend how verbs are learned. This book enters the relatively uncharted waters of early verb learning, focusing on the universal, conceptual foundations for verb learning, and how these foundations intersect with the burgeoning language system.

Of the 33 million adolescents in the United States, almost 10 million are at risk of failing to become responsible adults. They attend schools that do not serve their needs, lack the support of ...
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Of the 33 million adolescents in the United States, almost 10 million are at risk of failing to become responsible adults. They attend schools that do not serve their needs, lack the support of caring adults, and, as a result, are alienated from mainstream society. African-American and Hispanic children, increasingly segregated in disadvantaged neighborhoods, are particularly vulnerable. This book takes a close look at the lives of young people, identifies some of their problems, and presents solutions based on state-of-the-art prevention and treatment strategies. The chapters examine important issues in adolescents' lives—sex, violence, drugs, health, mental health, and education. Reviewing successful prevention programs and policy studies, they demonstrate that we know what to do to prevent high-risk behaviors: young people need to establish relationships with adults; parents need to be involved in their children's lives; and programs need to be comprehensive, sensitive to cultural differences, and staffed by highly trained personnel. The chapters argue that turning our backs on adolescents will lead to disturbing consequences: the achievement gap will grow, outcomes will worsen, school systems will struggle with the growing disparities, and we as a nation will fall behind the rest of the world in our capacity to educate our youth. If, however, we decide that we want a better quality of life for our children, we will ensure that every young person has access to an excellent education. Schools, youth workers, and parents cannot alone provide a better quality of life for our adolescents, but each must play a major role, and all must work together.Less

Adolescence : Growing Up in America Today

Joy G. DryfoosCarol Barkin

Published in print: 2006-08-31

Of the 33 million adolescents in the United States, almost 10 million are at risk of failing to become responsible adults. They attend schools that do not serve their needs, lack the support of caring adults, and, as a result, are alienated from mainstream society. African-American and Hispanic children, increasingly segregated in disadvantaged neighborhoods, are particularly vulnerable. This book takes a close look at the lives of young people, identifies some of their problems, and presents solutions based on state-of-the-art prevention and treatment strategies. The chapters examine important issues in adolescents' lives—sex, violence, drugs, health, mental health, and education. Reviewing successful prevention programs and policy studies, they demonstrate that we know what to do to prevent high-risk behaviors: young people need to establish relationships with adults; parents need to be involved in their children's lives; and programs need to be comprehensive, sensitive to cultural differences, and staffed by highly trained personnel. The chapters argue that turning our backs on adolescents will lead to disturbing consequences: the achievement gap will grow, outcomes will worsen, school systems will struggle with the growing disparities, and we as a nation will fall behind the rest of the world in our capacity to educate our youth. If, however, we decide that we want a better quality of life for our children, we will ensure that every young person has access to an excellent education. Schools, youth workers, and parents cannot alone provide a better quality of life for our adolescents, but each must play a major role, and all must work together.

While the period of transition from adolescence to adulthood has become a recent focus for developmental psychologists and child mental health practitioners, the full role of the family during this ...
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While the period of transition from adolescence to adulthood has become a recent focus for developmental psychologists and child mental health practitioners, the full role of the family during this period is only beginning to be explored. Many compelling questions, of interest to anyone involved in adolescence research, remain unanswered. To what extent do family experiences influence the way one navigates through emerging adulthood? How do we begin to understand the interplay between adolescents' contexts and their development and well-being? This book offers an accessible synthesis of research, theories, and perspectives on the family processes that contribute to development. Chapters cover a wide variety of topics surrounding the link between family processes and individual development, including adolescent romantic relationships, emotion regulation, resilience in contexts of risk, and socio-cultural and ethnic influences on development. Drawing on diverse research and methodological approaches that include direct family observations, interviews, and narrative analyses, this volume presents cutting-edge conceptual and empirical work on the key developmental tasks and challenges in the transition between adolescence and adulthood.Less

Adolescence and Beyond : Family Processes and Development

Patricia K. KerigMarc S. SchulzStuart T. Hauser

Published in print: 2012-01-04

While the period of transition from adolescence to adulthood has become a recent focus for developmental psychologists and child mental health practitioners, the full role of the family during this period is only beginning to be explored. Many compelling questions, of interest to anyone involved in adolescence research, remain unanswered. To what extent do family experiences influence the way one navigates through emerging adulthood? How do we begin to understand the interplay between adolescents' contexts and their development and well-being? This book offers an accessible synthesis of research, theories, and perspectives on the family processes that contribute to development. Chapters cover a wide variety of topics surrounding the link between family processes and individual development, including adolescent romantic relationships, emotion regulation, resilience in contexts of risk, and socio-cultural and ethnic influences on development. Drawing on diverse research and methodological approaches that include direct family observations, interviews, and narrative analyses, this volume presents cutting-edge conceptual and empirical work on the key developmental tasks and challenges in the transition between adolescence and adulthood.

In the wake of the civil rights movement, the legal system dramatically changed its response to discrimination based on race, gender, and other characteristics. It is now showing signs of yet another ...
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In the wake of the civil rights movement, the legal system dramatically changed its response to discrimination based on race, gender, and other characteristics. It is now showing signs of yet another dramatic shift, as it moves from considering difference to focusing on neutrality. Rather than seeking to counter subjugation through special protections for groups that have been historically (and currently) disadvantaged, the Court now adopts a “colorblind” approach. Equality now means treating everyone the same way. This book explores these shifts and the research used to support civil rights claims, particularly relating to minority youths' rights to equal treatment. It integrates developmental theory with work on legal equality and discrimination, showing both how the legal system can benefit from new research on development and how the legal system itself can work to address invidious discrimination given its significant influence on adolescents—especially those who are racial minorities—at a key stage in their developmental life. The book articulates the need to address discrimination by recognizing and enlisting the law's inculcative powers in multiple sites subject to legal regulation, ranging from families, schools, health and justice systems to religious and community groups. The legal system may champion ideals of neutrality in the goals it sets itself for treating individuals, but it cannot remain neutral in the values it supports and imparts. The book shows that despite the shift to a focus on neutrality, the Court can and should effectively foster values supporting equality, especially among youth.Less

Adolescence, Discrimination, and the Law : Addressing Dramatic Shifts in Equality Jurisprudence

Roger J.R. Levesque

Published in print: 2015-05-29

In the wake of the civil rights movement, the legal system dramatically changed its response to discrimination based on race, gender, and other characteristics. It is now showing signs of yet another dramatic shift, as it moves from considering difference to focusing on neutrality. Rather than seeking to counter subjugation through special protections for groups that have been historically (and currently) disadvantaged, the Court now adopts a “colorblind” approach. Equality now means treating everyone the same way. This book explores these shifts and the research used to support civil rights claims, particularly relating to minority youths' rights to equal treatment. It integrates developmental theory with work on legal equality and discrimination, showing both how the legal system can benefit from new research on development and how the legal system itself can work to address invidious discrimination given its significant influence on adolescents—especially those who are racial minorities—at a key stage in their developmental life. The book articulates the need to address discrimination by recognizing and enlisting the law's inculcative powers in multiple sites subject to legal regulation, ranging from families, schools, health and justice systems to religious and community groups. The legal system may champion ideals of neutrality in the goals it sets itself for treating individuals, but it cannot remain neutral in the values it supports and imparts. The book shows that despite the shift to a focus on neutrality, the Court can and should effectively foster values supporting equality, especially among youth.

We currently struggle to create satisfying intimate or close relationships, something we yearn for but often fail to achieve in our evolving world culture. With our changing concepts of and demands ...
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We currently struggle to create satisfying intimate or close relationships, something we yearn for but often fail to achieve in our evolving world culture. With our changing concepts of and demands on close relationships, we need new ways to understand what facilitates satisfying close relationships. In this book, a new theory, called postformal thought, is presented, along with previously unpublished related studies and research approaches and the idea that complex cognition is useful for co-constructing satisfying intimate relationships. The personal relational aspects of relationships as well as cultural, historical, and social factors are combined to give a big-picture view of cognitive aspects of thriving close relationships. The book rests on 30 years of research in adult cognitive development and on other recent empirical research conducted by the author and others. Cases are presented to illustrate the thinking of persons in close and satisfying relationships. Future research and applications are suggested in the final section of the book.Less

Adult Development : Cognitive Aspects of Thriving Close Relationships

Jan D. Sinnott

Published in print: 2014-08-05

We currently struggle to create satisfying intimate or close relationships, something we yearn for but often fail to achieve in our evolving world culture. With our changing concepts of and demands on close relationships, we need new ways to understand what facilitates satisfying close relationships. In this book, a new theory, called postformal thought, is presented, along with previously unpublished related studies and research approaches and the idea that complex cognition is useful for co-constructing satisfying intimate relationships. The personal relational aspects of relationships as well as cultural, historical, and social factors are combined to give a big-picture view of cognitive aspects of thriving close relationships. The book rests on 30 years of research in adult cognitive development and on other recent empirical research conducted by the author and others. Cases are presented to illustrate the thinking of persons in close and satisfying relationships. Future research and applications are suggested in the final section of the book.

Humans' first languages may have been expressed through sign. Today, sign languages have been found around the world, including communities that do not have access to education or literacy. In ...
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Humans' first languages may have been expressed through sign. Today, sign languages have been found around the world, including communities that do not have access to education or literacy. In addition to serving as a primary medium of communication for deaf communities, they have become among the most popular choices for second language study by hearing students. The status of sign languages as complex and complete languages that are clearly the linguistic “equal” of spoken languages is no longer questioned. Research on the characteristics of visual languages has blossomed since the 1960s, and careful study of deaf children’s development of sign language skills is pursued to obtain information to promote deaf children’s development. Equally important, the study of how children learn sign language provides excellent theoretical insights into how the human brain acquires and structures sign languages. In the same sense that cross-linguistic research has led to a better understanding of how language affects development, cross-modal research allows us to study the acquisition of language in the absence of a spoken phonology. This book provides cogent summaries of what is known about early gestural development, interactive processes adapted to visual communication, and the processes of semantic, syntactic and pragmatic development in sign. It addresses theoretical as well as applied questions, often with a focus on aspects of language which are (or perhaps are not) related to the modality of the language.Less

Advances in the Sign-Language Development of Deaf Children

Published in print: 2005-10-13

Humans' first languages may have been expressed through sign. Today, sign languages have been found around the world, including communities that do not have access to education or literacy. In addition to serving as a primary medium of communication for deaf communities, they have become among the most popular choices for second language study by hearing students. The status of sign languages as complex and complete languages that are clearly the linguistic “equal” of spoken languages is no longer questioned. Research on the characteristics of visual languages has blossomed since the 1960s, and careful study of deaf children’s development of sign language skills is pursued to obtain information to promote deaf children’s development. Equally important, the study of how children learn sign language provides excellent theoretical insights into how the human brain acquires and structures sign languages. In the same sense that cross-linguistic research has led to a better understanding of how language affects development, cross-modal research allows us to study the acquisition of language in the absence of a spoken phonology. This book provides cogent summaries of what is known about early gestural development, interactive processes adapted to visual communication, and the processes of semantic, syntactic and pragmatic development in sign. It addresses theoretical as well as applied questions, often with a focus on aspects of language which are (or perhaps are not) related to the modality of the language.

Throughout history there have been efforts to help deaf children develop spoken language through which they could have full access to the hearing world. These efforts, although pursued seriously and ...
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Throughout history there have been efforts to help deaf children develop spoken language through which they could have full access to the hearing world. These efforts, although pursued seriously and with great care, frequently proved fruitless and often resulted only in passionate arguments over the efficacy of particular approaches. Although some deaf children did develop spoken language, there was little evidence to suggest that this development had been facilitated by any particular educational approach, and moreover, many, even most deaf children — especially those with profound loss — never develop spoken language at all. Recent technological advances, however, have led to more positive expectations for deaf children's acquisitions of spoken language: innovative testing procedures for hearing allow for early identification of loss which leads to intervention services during the first weeks and months of life. Programmable hearing aids allow more children to make use of residual hearing abilities. Children with the most profound losses are able to reap greater benefits from cochlear-implant technologies. At the same time, there have been great advances in research into the processes of deaf children's language development and the outcomes they experience. As a result, we are for the first time accruing a sufficient base of evidence and information to allow reliable predictions about children's progress which will, in turn, lead to further advances. This book presents information on the new world evolving for deaf and hard-of-hearing children and the improved expectations for their acquisition of spoken language.Less

Advances in the Spoken Language Development of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

Published in print: 2005-09-29

Throughout history there have been efforts to help deaf children develop spoken language through which they could have full access to the hearing world. These efforts, although pursued seriously and with great care, frequently proved fruitless and often resulted only in passionate arguments over the efficacy of particular approaches. Although some deaf children did develop spoken language, there was little evidence to suggest that this development had been facilitated by any particular educational approach, and moreover, many, even most deaf children — especially those with profound loss — never develop spoken language at all. Recent technological advances, however, have led to more positive expectations for deaf children's acquisitions of spoken language: innovative testing procedures for hearing allow for early identification of loss which leads to intervention services during the first weeks and months of life. Programmable hearing aids allow more children to make use of residual hearing abilities. Children with the most profound losses are able to reap greater benefits from cochlear-implant technologies. At the same time, there have been great advances in research into the processes of deaf children's language development and the outcomes they experience. As a result, we are for the first time accruing a sufficient base of evidence and information to allow reliable predictions about children's progress which will, in turn, lead to further advances. This book presents information on the new world evolving for deaf and hard-of-hearing children and the improved expectations for their acquisition of spoken language.

The puzzle that motivates Agency and Joint Attention is how people are able at one and the same time to maintain their own sense of autonomy, taking responsibility for their own actions and ...
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The puzzle that motivates Agency and Joint Attention is how people are able at one and the same time to maintain their own sense of autonomy, taking responsibility for their own actions and distinguishing them from the actions of others, while still being able to understand, appreciate, and coordinate their thoughts and actions with other people. This volume emphasizes the special role of human self-reflective consciousness in this complex but central coordination.Less

Agency and Joint Attention

Published in print: 2013-08-26

The puzzle that motivates Agency and Joint Attention is how people are able at one and the same time to maintain their own sense of autonomy, taking responsibility for their own actions and distinguishing them from the actions of others, while still being able to understand, appreciate, and coordinate their thoughts and actions with other people. This volume emphasizes the special role of human self-reflective consciousness in this complex but central coordination.